The establishment of the Kurdistan Democratic Party on August 16, 1946, and the joining of all political organizations in South Kurdistan to this party, moved the Kurdish revolutionary movement in South Kurdistan to a new stage. In this stage, and feeling the importance of the position of active and influential segments of society and utilizing their capabilities, the party leadership attempted to organize various segments of society, including the student segment, which constituted the broadest intellectual and influential segment in society.
Since the beginning of its establishment, the Kurdistan Democratic Party, like other Iraqi Parties and organizations, attempted to participate in the important issues of the country, and this was mainly through the students, who were among the most active members of the Party and had an influential participation in the country's events. However, at that time, activities were carried out within the framework of the General Union of Iraqi Students, where they were completely controlled by the Communists, but there were good relations between the Kurdish students within the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Iraqi Communist Party.
The beginning of the efforts of Kurdish students to establish their own organization dates back to the 1946-1947 academic year, when Kurdish students in the Koya middle school established a secret organization called (Educational Progress Society). Since its inception, the organization did not have its own rules and program, although its members were organized within a cell consisting of 30 people.
For the first time in Iraq and in the year 1948, the Al-Siba' Congress decided on April 14 to establish a student organization called (General Union of Iraqi Students). The Kurdish students played a major role in the success of this Congress, and the Election of the Congress Representatives was conducted in (52) schools, and in the Kurdish Areas, the representatives of the Kurdistan Democratic Party won for the Congress, so it was decided to open a branch of the Kurdistan Students Union-Iraq dedicated to the affairs of Kurdish students.
Establishment of the Kurdistan Students UnionDue to the changes that Iraq was going through at that time, differences in goals and ideologies led to the increasing separation of Kurdish students from students in Iraq, until they turned into two completely different movements, each trying to achieve its own goals. These factors prompted the leadership of the Kurdistan Democratic Party to look more seriously at establishing a Kurdish student organization within the framework of the Party, and it decided at its Third Congress on January 26, 1953, to establish mass organizations, including the decision to establish the (Kurdistan Students Union) organization. After the Congress decision, the Kurdish students moved immediately and held their First Congress on February 18, 1953, in Baghdad secretly.
The Congress was held in the house of (Ziad Hama Agha Koya) near the Bab al-Muazzam area, with the attendance of fifty Delegates from the colleges of the University of Baghdad and the cities of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Kirkuk, and Mosul,
Hilmi Ali Sharif and Haidar, and Ahmed Abdullah Amidi, Jalal Talabani, Shams al-Din Muhammad al-Mufti, Hilmi Ali Sharif, Haidar Hamad Amin, Muhammad Faraj, Ghafoor Rashid Agha, Faiq Sabri, and a number of other students each had a major role in the success of the Congress.
The Congress lasted for two days, and after discussions and exchange of opinions, it was decided to establish two committees, one to amend the program and internal regulations and the other to issue a bulletin on the reasons and importance of establishing the organization. Then, voting began to appoint the President, the Secretary, and the members of the Secretariat. As a result, Ahmed Abdullah Amidi was elected as the first President and Jalal Talabani as the Secretary of the organization. In terms of powers, the President was considered a symbolic rank, and decision-making and executive powers were mainly entrusted to the Secretary and the Secretariat(6). The seven members of the Secretariat were elected as follows:
1- Shams al-Din Muhammad al-Mufti
2- Fadhil Saeed Agha
3- Omar Mustafa (Dababa)
4- Kamal Muhyiddin
6- Haidar Hamad Amin
7- Ghafoor Rashid Agha.
Then the High Committee (Secretariat Office) appointed Jamal Shali as the responsible for the relations of the colleges of the University of Baghdad. After the end of the Congress, a booklet was published in Arabic titled "Why the Kurdistan Students Union?" and branches of the Union were opened in most cities such as Baghdad, Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Kirkuk, Koya (Koysinjaq), Rawanduz, Khanaqin, and Mosul, and activities were expanded and developed.
After a year of working as the President of the organization, Ahmed Abdullah Amidi resigned in 1954 after graduating from the Higher Institute of Teachers and being appointed as a teacher, and Shams al-Din Muhammad al-Mufti was appointed as the President of the (Kurdistan Students Union) organization instead of him.
In this way, the work and activities of Kurdish students were separated within the framework of their own organization from the (General Union of Iraqi Students), and the students who were members of the Kurdistan Democratic Party organizations dedicated their efforts and struggle within the (Kurdistan Students Union) organization, in order to further develop the cultural and revolutionary movement and serve the students in South Kurdistan.
Sources:1- Majid Hassan Ali, The Kurdish Student Movement in Iraq (1926-1970), Master's Thesis/Salahaddin University in Erbil 2008, Spirez Publications, (Erbil - Haji Hashim Press).
2- Erfan Aziz Aziz, Congresses and Conferences of the Kurdistan Students Union, First Edition, (Erbil - Rojhalat Press - 2012).
3- Kurdistan Students Union of Iraq - Central Cultural and Media Committee of the Secretariat Office, Kurdistan Students Need to Have a Special Organization, (December 1973).
4- Kurdistan Democratic Party Encyclopedia Board, History of the Kurdistan Democratic Party Congresses and Conferences (Program and Internal Regulations), Volume One, First Edition, (Erbil - Rojhalat Press - 2021).
5- Salah Rashid, Mam Jalal: A Life's Encounter from Youth to the Republican Palace, Part One, Second Edition, (Sulaymaniyah - Karo Press - 2017).
6- Khabat Students Magazine, In a special interview, President Talabani reveals the details of the establishment of the (K.S.U), Issue 109, (June 2012).